[edycol]

Originally Posted by 7tune

Perfect! My oil choices are locked in. The Shell Helix Ultra 5W-40 is very easy to get here at about $100 for 8 liters. Alternatively, the Pennzoil is available in a 20 liter drum for $140. That makes more sense!

Pennzoil Platinum Euro 5W40 is same oil as Shell Helix 5W40.
Mobil1 0W40 API SP is again LL01.

[F87source]

Originally Posted by 7tune

Perfect! My oil choices are locked in. The Shell Helix Ultra 5W-40 is very easy to get here at about $100 for 8 liters. Alternatively, the Pennzoil is available in a 20 liter drum for $140. That makes more sense!

Yeah probably buy that 20L drum then, it's way more economical.

[mecheng77]

Japanese cars are junk when exposed to harsh salt roads, they all rust badly. I used to own many Hondas and I will gladly deal with BMW oil leaks over a body that completely rusts. Mazdas are the worst for rust, Subaru have junk engines.

[F87source]

Originally Posted by mecheng77

Japanese cars are junk when exposed to harsh salt roads, they all rust badly. I used to own many Hondas and I will gladly deal with BMW oil leaks over a body that completely rusts. Mazdas are the worst for rust, Subaru have junk engines.

My newer Honda and Acura vehicles with decent underbody paneling and seam sealing doesn't have any major corrosion issues whatsoever.

[mecheng77]

Originally Posted by F87source

My newer Honda and Acura vehicles with decent underbody paneling and seam sealing doesn't have any major corrosion issues whatsoever.

Give it time

[F87source]

Originally Posted by mecheng77

Give it time

It's been 14 years and 11 years, nothing. Like I said modern day underbody panneling and seam sealing is very very good.

I had a 1997 crv and that was rusted to nothing, because it had little to no underbody panneling or seam sealing.

[2020_M2CS]

How much have you spend so far on fixing this beast? **Beast in a good way

[7tune]

Originally Posted by F87source

Subaru's are great, but I hate the EJ257 - that engine is absolutely garbage and is an endless money pit.

I think the North Americans got stiffed on Foresters and the like but I'm absolutely certain it was because of "emissions" and fuel "quality".

The EJ257 has so many problems but the EJ25 never gave me any! Fun fact, my last SG9 is in central Canada enjoying the hockey seasons

[7tune]

Originally Posted by 2020_M2CS

How much have you spend so far on fixing this beast? **Beast in a good way

Not too much... maybe less than $800 so far. Less than I expected and now I know FCPEuro exists. Japan is prohibitive in this way on so many levels but the exchange rate is a real blowout.

I'm budgeting $5~$6k all up to get her a complete reset.

[F87source]

Originally Posted by 7tune

Not too much... maybe less than $800 so far. Less than I expected and now I know FCPEuro exists. Japan is prohibitive in this way on so many levels but the exchange rate is a real blowout.

I'm budgeting $5~$6k all up to get her a complete reset.

That should be more than enough to fully restore her, especially if you use OEM parts instead of genuine and DIY everything.

[F87source]

Originally Posted by 7tune

I think the North Americans got stiffed on Foresters and the like but I'm absolutely certain it was because of "emissions" and fuel "quality".

The EJ257 has so many problems but the EJ25 never gave me any! Fun fact, my last SG9 is in central Canada enjoying the hockey seasons

Yup, Subaru tuned the NA cars differently to meet emissions and the stock tune sucked and knocked like crazy. Fuel quality was also not soo good in NA compared to Europe, so thats another factor.


Nice! Alot of JDM cars make it to Canada because we have a 15 year import restriction vs. the 25 years in the USA. There are so many R34 GTR's here it's crazy lol, makes me wish I got one. Then I realized how much it costs to maintain them, mod them, and insure them, and working on these old cars are a major PITA. So in the end I am glad I got an m2.

[7tune]

Originally Posted by F87source

That should be more than enough to fully restore her, especially if you use OEM parts instead of genuine and DIY everything.

I thought maybe $4 ~ 5k but am also including new PS4S right at the end. As it is, half of what I need is on the way.

Also now have access to a friend's garage with a two post. I would, however, love your help on the digital side though when it comes to it...

So many questions about the Bimmergeek hardware and what is possible with my car through Bimmer-Remote.

Am I wrong in thinking only LCI are touchscreen because while it doesn't appear mine is, is it a software lock only?

[mecheng77]

I would make sure you didn’t blow a head gasket when you overheated the engine before you throw a lot of money into it

[7tune]

Originally Posted by mecheng77

I would make sure you didn’t blow a head gasket when you overheated the engine before you throw a lot of money into it

Both myself and the guys at Studie are certain there’s no internal or engine assembly damage. They told me it could be because of the old battery it is throwing codes, so im just going to replace everything.

I took her for a casual drive yesterday and she didn’t skip a beat.

But thanks for your concern. 👍🏻

[7tune]

Originally Posted by F87source

Nice! Alot of JDM cars make it to Canada because we have a 15 year import restriction vs. the 25 years in the USA. There are so many R34 GTR's here it's crazy lol, makes me wish I got one. Then I realized how much it costs to maintain them, mod them, and insure them, and working on these old cars are a major PITA. So in the end I am glad I got an m2.

15 year is the only reason my ‘04 is up north! I expect Japan will simply get r**ed of everything once they kick over another decade. You wouldn’t believe the prices here mate.. even for junk heaps. It’s crazy… and why I got out when I did.

Don’t want to deal with all that BS. 🤷🏻‍♂️

[7tune]

Small update on my refresh. I’ve been accumulating all sorts of parts the last couple of months for a huge overhaul on pretty much everything cooling and braking.

I’ll be updating this thread with my progress on what worked and hopefully less about what didn’t.

While I’ve got a third order on the way for the cooling system, I wanted to share these AWESOME rear BMW GTS Motorsport hubs and F.A.G bearing set sourced from BimmerWorld.

These were a no brainer replacement for the crusted out, Costco level lame rear end design that I’m sure plagues every single F8X owner out there. I personally hate it.

For what I paid from BimmerWorld ($750), delivered for the entire kit which includes F.A.G bearings and all the hardware needed, makes this even more necessary when addressing this common issue on the car.

BimmerWorld shipped my order less than a day after I made it and it got to me in Japan less than a week later. I would recommend them (along with FCP Euro) every single time. Unfortunately, FCP doesn’t stock these, so that’s why I was desperate for alternatives as I don’t want to do them again.

A shame because I believe part #33008328143 is something every single F8X owner should be investing in simply for peace of mind.

The full kit number from BW is #100.33.680.0003

They also have an even beefier kit with legit BMW Motorsport bearing for hardcore individuals: #100.33.680.0002

I have a sheitload more to come in before I tackle the mechanicals in succession but would love for you guys to see it - grease and all.

[7tune]

Okay, battery went in today, car started fine and the old battery was totally dead. Going in for coding at Studie on Saturday (no OBDII on hand and this is urgent) but I cannot for the life of me find on this thing where it shows the month and year of manufacture.

I’ve checked everywhere - there’s no engraving on the top of the battery like I’ve seen in YouTube videos specifically about Varta batteries.

*edit: figured out the code
21 49 3 = December 2021 manufacture. Still the “new” battery is almost 2 years old at this point and that’s kinda annoying…

Should I send it back?? And since it isn't coded yet is it okay to leave it as is until Saturday when I can finish it up?

[F87source]

Originally Posted by 7tune

Okay, battery went in today, car started fine and the old battery was totally dead. Going in for coding at Studie on Saturday (no OBDII on hand and this is urgent) but I cannot for the life of me find on this thing where it shows the month and year of manufacture.

I’ve checked everywhere - there’s no engraving on the top of the battery like I’ve seen in YouTube videos specifically about Varta batteries.

*edit: figured out the code
21 49 3 = December 2021 manufacture. Still the “new” battery is almost 2 years old at this point and that’s kinda annoying…

Should I send it back?? And since it isn't coded yet is it okay to leave it as is until Saturday when I can finish it up?

Yeah it should be fine to leave it unregistered for now, it'll just be undercharged but it shouldn't do harm if it's only for a few days.

It's only bad if you're going down in capacity and don't code + register it. Because that can result in over charging which can cause the battery to blow up.

[7tune]

New battery was easily registered and had a chance to get under the car for a look around. This car is from northern Japan so the roads are salty - hence the surface rust. It’ll clean up well enough but I’m scratching my head about these bolts.

What the hell are they? I can’t find them anywhere on realOEM and I have absolutely no idea what part number they are. I don’t even know what that part is since it doesn’t even show up in the diff or output shaft diagrams??

Any help?? I want to replace all of them. Thanks!

[mecheng77]

Originally Posted by 7tune

New battery was easily registered and had a chance to get under the car for a look around. This car is from northern Japan so the roads are salty - hence the surface rust. It’ll clean up well enough but I’m scratching my head about these bolts.

What the hell are they? I can’t find them anywhere on realOEM and I have absolutely no idea what part number they are. I don’t even know what that part is since it doesn’t even show up in the diff or output shaft diagrams??

Any help?? I want to replace all of them. Thanks!

You don’t need to replace them, my car was exposed to salt and this is how you fix it.

Get a wire brush and brush the surface rust, use different size brushes to get into various areas. Don’t skip the step!

Spray down area with brake clean and wipe/brush the area

Coat the areas with the best rust converters you can find. Check if it requires 2 coats

Go back in a few days when the rust converter has done its job and cost the black steel subframe with marine grease


I had some surface rust on my subframe and I did this and it’s all gone, it’s nice and black now.

[7tune]

Originally Posted by mecheng77

You don’t need to replace them, my car was exposed to salt and this is how you fix it.

Get a wire brush and brush the surface rust, use different size brushes to get into various areas. Don’t skip the step!

Spray down area with brake clean and wipe/brush the area

Coat the areas with the best rust converters you can find. Check if it requires 2 coats

Go back in a few days when the rust converter has done its job and cost the black steel subframe with marine grease


I had some surface rust on my subframe and I did this and it’s all gone, it’s nice and black now.

That’s hilarious! That is literally step by step exactly what the guys at Studie Tokyo also told me to do…

Thanks for the reminder. Still.., what the hell is the part number for those bolts?

[Philly_sweden]

Originally Posted by 7tune

That’s hilarious! That is literally step by step exactly what the guys at Studie Tokyo also told me to do…

Thanks for the reminder. Still.., what the hell is the part number for those bolts?

Thats the output shaft

http://bmwfans.info/parts-catalog/F8...apter_gaskets/